Narrative of Services in the Liberation of
Chili, Peru and Brazil, from Spanish and Portuguese DominationChapter I

INVITATION TO TAKE COMMAND OF CHILIAN
NAVY--ARRIVAL AT VALPARAISO--FIRST EXPEDITION TO PERU--ATTACK ON SPANISH
SHIPPING AT CALLAO--DEPARTURE FOR HUACHO--CAPTURE OF SPANISH CONVOYS OF
MONEY--PAITA TAKEN--RETURN TO VALPARAISO TO REORGANIZE THE
SQUADRON--OFFER TO GIVE UP MY SHARE OF PRIZEMONEY TO THE REPUBLIC--THIS
OFFER DECLINED BY THE SUPREME DIRECTOR--POPULAR CONGRATULATIONS--ATTEMPT
ON LADY COCHRANE'S LIFE.

In the year 1817, Don Jose Alvarez, accredited
agent of the government
of Chili--as yet unacknowledged by European powers--applied to me to undertake the organization of a naval force in
that country, capable of contending against the Spaniards; who,
notwithstanding the successful revolt of the Chilenos by land, still maintained
their predominance on
the waters of the Pacific.

Having at that time no
professional employment, in consequence of my unjust expulsion from the British naval service,
by the machinations of
the powerful political party which I had offended--and finding that Chili was making great efforts to create a navy,
in furtherance of which
object a war steamer had been placed on the stocks in London--I accepted the invitation, engaging to superintend her
building and equipment, and to take her to Valparaiso when completed.

Meanwhile, Alvarez received
orders from his Government, that, if his proposals had been accepted, no time must be lost
in my departure, as the
position of Chili was critical, the Spaniards threatening Valparaiso by sea, and being still in possession of the
continent from Conception to Chiloe, where they were organizing the savage
Indian tribes to carry
desolation into the newly emancipated provinces. Reliable information had also been received, that the Court of Madrid
was making strenuous
efforts to recover its lost possessions by a powerful reinforcement to its Pacific squadron, against which the Chileno
ships of war, in their
present state, were not in a condition to contend.

Alvarez therefore begged me
not to wait for the steamer, the completion and equipment of which he would hasten, but at
once to sail for Chili in the Rose merchantman, then on the eve of
departure. Knowing that the whole of Peru was in the hands of the Spaniards,
and that they were also
in possession of Valdivia, the strongest fortified harbour to the southward--from both of which there would be
considerable difficulty in dislodging them after the arrival of the
anticipated reinforcements--I embarked without delay; and on the 28th of
November, 1818, landed at Valparaiso, accompanied by Lady Cochrane and our
two children.

Our reception, both from the authorities and the
people, was
enthusiastic, the Supreme Director, General O'Higgins, coming from the seat of Government, Santiago, to welcome us. This
excellent man was the
son of an Irish gentleman of distinction in the Spanish service, who had occupied the important position of Viceroy of
Peru. The son had,
however, joined the patriots, and whilst second in command had not long before inflicted a signal defeat upon the
Spaniards in the interior; in reward for which service the gratitude of the
nation had elevated him to the Supreme Directorate.

A variety of fetes was given
at Valparaiso in honour of our arrival, these being prolonged for so many days as to
amount to a waste of time. The same scenes were, however, re-enacted at the
distant capital, whither
the Supreme Director insisted on taking us, till I had to remind His Excellency that our purpose was rather
fighting than feasting.
Nevertheless, the reception we had met impressed me with so high a sense of Chilian hospitality, that, heartbroken as I had
been by the infamous
persecution which had driven me from the British navy, I decided upon Chili as my future home; this decision, however,
being only an
exemplification of the proverb "L'homme propose--Dieu dispose."

The Chilian squadron had just
returned from a successful cruise, the gallant Admiral Blanco Encalada, who commanded it,
having captured a noble
Spanish 50-gun frigate, the Maria Isabel, in the bay of Talcahuano.

The squadron consisted of the
recently captured Spanish frigate, now named the O'Higgins, in honour of the Supreme
Director; the San
Martin, 56 guns, formerly the Cumberland Indiaman, which had been bought into the service; the Lautaro, 44 guns,
also a purchased
Indiaman; the Galvarino, 18 guns, recently the British sloop of war Hecate; the Chacabuco, 20 guns; and the Aracauno,
16 guns; a force which,
though deficient in organization and equipment, was very creditable to the energy of a newly emancipated
people.

A few days after my arrival a commission was
issued, conferring upon me the title of "Vice-Admiral of Chili, Admiral and
Commander in Chief of
the Naval Forces of the Republic." Admiral Blanco, with patriotic liberality, relinquishing his position in my
favour, though, from his recent achievement, justly entitled to retain it;
paying me also the
additional compliment of personally announcing to the ships' companies the change which had been effected.

My advent was regarded by the
captains of the squadron with great jealousy, the more so, as I had brought with me
from England officers
upon whom I could place implicit reliance. It so happened that two of the Chilian commanders, Captains Guise and Spry,
had shortly before
arrived from England with the Hecate, which had been sold out of the British navy, and bought by them on speculation.
The Buenos Ayrean
Government having declined to purchase her, they had brought her on to Chili, where the Government took her and received
her former owners into
its service. These officers, together with Captain Worcester, a North American, got up a cabal, the object of which was
to bring about a divided
command between myself and Admiral Blanco, or, as they expressed it--"two commodores and no Cochrane."
Finding that Admiral
Blanco would not listen to this, they persuaded one or two of the inferior ministers--whose jealousy it was not
difficult to excite--that it was dangerous and discreditable to a republican
Government to allow a
nobleman and a foreigner to command its navy, and still more so, to allow him to retain his title; the object being to
place Admiral Blanco in
the chief command, with myself as his second--by which arrangement, as he had not been accustomed to manage British
seamen, they expected to control him as they pleased. Admiral Blanco,
however, insisted on
reversing our positions, offering his services as second in command, in which arrangement I gladly acquiesced. This
insignificant squabble would not be worth narrating, but for its bearing on
subsequent events; as
well as enabling me to confer a pleasing testimony to the patriotic disinterestedness of Admiral Blanco, who is still
one of the brightest
ornaments of the Republic which he so eminently aided to establish.

On the 22nd of December my
flag was hoisted on board the O'Higgins, after which the greatest despatch was used to get
the squadron ready for
sea. Anxious to avoid delay, on the 16th of January I sailed with four ships only, the O'Higgins, San Martin, Lautaro,
and Chacabuco; leaving
Admiral Blanco to follow with the Gaharino, Aracauno, and Puyrredon. A mutiny having broken out on board
the Chacabuco, it
became necessary to enter Coquimbo, where the leading mutineers were landed, tried, and punished.

I shall here narrate an
incident which occurred on our departure. Lady Cochrane, with her children, had returned from
Santiago to Valparaiso,
to take leave of me on embarkation. She had just gone ashore, and the last gun had been fired to summon all hands on
board, when, hearing a
loud hurrah near the house where she resided, she went to the window, and saw our little boy--now Lord Cochrane, but
then scarcely more than
five years old--mounted on the shoulders of my flag-lieutenant, waving his tiny cap over the heads of the people, and
crying out with all his
might, "Viva la patria!" the mob being in a frenzied state of excitement.

The child had slipped out of
Lady Cochrane's house with the officer, insisting on being carried to his father; with
which request the
lieutenant, nothing loth, complied. To the horror of Lady Cochrane, she saw her boy hurried down to the beach amidst the
shouts of the multitude,
and, before she could interfere, placed in a boat and rowed off to the flag-ship, which was at the time under
weigh, so that he could
not be sent ashore again; there being no alternative but to take him with us, though without clothes--which were
afterwards made for him
by the sailors--and with no other attendance save that which their rough but kindly natures could administer.

On our way along the coast we
received information that the Antonio was about to sail from Callao for Cadiz, with a
considerable amount of
treasure, so that, in the hope of intercepting her, we cruized just out of sight of the port till the 21st of February. As
she did not make her
appearance, preparations were made to put in execution a plan which had been formed to attack the Spanish shipping during
the Carnival, when, in
the height of that festival, less vigilance than ordinary might reasonably be expected. We had previously
ascertained that the naval force in the harbour consisted of the frigates
Esmeralda and Venganza,
a corvette, three brigs of war, a schooner, twenty-eight gun-boats, and six heavily-armed merchantmen; the
whole being moored close
in under the batteries, which mounted upwards of 160 guns, whilst the aggregate force of the shipping was 350 guns,
as appeared from an
official account of their armament.

A direct attack with our small
force seemed, therefore, a thing not at present to be attempted; but in its place I had
formed the design to cut out the frigates during the carnival, which
terminated on the 23rd.
Knowing that two North American ships of war were daily expected at Callao, it was arranged to take in the O'Higgins
and Lautaro, under
American colours, leaving the San Martin out of sight behind San Lorenzo, and if the ruse were successful, to
make a feint of sending a boat ashore with despatches, and in the meantime
suddenly to dash at the
frigates, and cut them out. Unfortunately, one of those thick fogs, so common on the Peruvian coast, arose, in which the
Lautaro parted
company, and did not rejoin the flag-ship for four days afterwards, when the carnival being at an end, our plan was
rendered abortive.

The fog, which in the climate of Peru often
continues for a considerable length of time, lasted till the 29th, when hearing
heavy firing, and
imagining that one of the ships was engaged with the enemy, I stood with the flag-ship into the bay; the other ships,
imagining the same thing, also steered in the direction of the firing, when
the fog clearing for a
moment, we discovered each other, as well as a strange sail near us; which, when taken possession of by the flag-ship,
proved to be a Spanish
gun-boat, with a lieutenant and twenty men, who, on being made prisoners, informed us that the firing was a
salute in honour of the
Viceroy, who had that morning been on a visit of inspection to the batteries and shipping, and was then on board the
brig of war Pezuela,
which we saw crowding sail in the direction of the batteries.

The fog again coming on,
suggested to me the possibility of a direct attack, which, if not altogether successful, would
give the Spaniards such
an idea of our determination of purpose, as would inspire them with respect for the Chilian squadron, and might induce
their ships to refrain
from the protection of their commerce; in which case a blockade would prevent the necessity of separating our
small force in chase of
them, should they evince a desire of getting to sea.

Accordingly, still maintaining
our disguise under American colours, the O'Higgins and Lautaro stood towards the
batteries, narrowly escaping going ashore in the fog. The Viceroy having no
doubt witnessed the
capture of the gun-boat, had, however, provided for our reception, the garrison being at their guns, and the crews of the
ships of war at their
quarters. Notwithstanding the great odds, I determined to persist in an attack, as our withdrawing without firing a shot,
would produce an effect
upon the minds of the Spaniards the reverse of that intended; having sufficient experience in war to know that
moral effect, even if
the result of a degree of temerity, will not unfrequently supply the place of superior force.

The wind falling light, I did
not venture on laying the flag-ship and the Lautaro alongside the Spanish frigates, as
at first intended, but
anchored with springs on our cables, abreast of the shipping, which was arranged in a half-moon of two lines, the rear
rank being judiciously
disposed so as to cover the intervals of the ships in the front line. A dead calm succeeding, we were for two hours
exposed to a heavy fire from the batteries, in addition to that from the two
frigates, the brigs Pezuela
and Maypeu, and seven or eight gun-boats; nevertheless, the northern angle of one of the principal forts was
silenced by our fire.

A breeze springing up, we weighed anchor, standing
to and fro in front of
the batteries, and returning their fire; when Captain Guise, who commanded the Lautaro, being severely wounded,
that ship sheered off,
and never again came within range. As from want of wind, or doubt of the result, neither the San Martin nor Chacabuco
had ever got within
fire, the flag-ship was thus left alone to continue the action; but as this, from want of co-operation on the part of the
other ships, was
useless, I was reluctantly compelled to relinquish the attack, and withdrew to the island of San Lorenzo, about three
miles distant from the
forts; the Spaniards, though nearly quadruple our numbers, exclusive of their gun-boats, not venturing to follow us.

Total, fourteen vessels, of which ten were ready
for sea; and
twenty-seven gun-boats.

In this action my little boy had a narrow escape.
As the story has been
told by several Chilian writers somewhat incorrectly, I will recapitulate the circumstances.

When the firing commenced, I
had placed the boy in my after-cabin, locking the door upon him; but not liking the
restriction, he contrived to get through the quarter gallery window, and
joined me on deck,
refusing to go down again. As I could not attend to him, he was permitted to remain, and, in a miniature
midshipman's uniform, which the seamen had made for him, was busying himself in
handing powder to the
gunners.

Whilst thus employed, a round shot took off the
head of a marine close
to him, scattering the unlucky man's brains in his face. Instantly recovering his self-possession, to my great
relief, for believing him killed, I was spell-bound with agony, he ran up to
me exclaiming, "I am not
hurt, papa: the shot did not touch me; Jack says, the ball is not made that can kill mamma's boy." I ordered him to
be carried below; but,
resisting with all his might, he was permitted to remain on deck during the action.

Our loss in this affair was
trifling, considering that we were under the fire of more than two hundred guns; but the ships
were so placed that the
enemy's frigates lay between us and the fortress, so that the shot of the latter only told upon our rigging, which
was considerably
damaged.

The action having been commenced in a fog, the
Spaniards imagined that
all the Chilian vessels were engaged, and were not a little surprised, as it again cleared, to find that their own
frigate, the quondam Maria Isabella, was their only opponent. So much were
they dispirited by this
discovery, that as soon as possible after the close of the contest, their ships of war were dismantled, the top masts
and spars being formed
into a double boom across the anchorage so as to prevent approach. The Spaniards were also previously unaware of my being
in command of the
Chilian squadron, but on becoming acquainted with this fact, bestowed upon me the not very complimentary title of "El
Diablo," by which I was
afterwards known amongst them. The title might have been rendered more appropriate, had my efforts been better seconded
by the other vessels.

On the following day, having repaired damages, the
flag-ship and Lautaro
again went in and commenced a destructive fire upon the Spanish gun-boats, the neutral vessels in the
harbour removing out of
the line of shot. As the gun-boats withdrew to a position closer under the batteries, where we could make little
impression upon them without getting severely punished by the fire of the
fortress, we contented
ourselves with the demonstration made.

On the 2nd of March, I
despatched Capt. Foster with the gun-boat captured from the Spaniards, and the launches of
the O'Higgins and Lautaro--to
take possession of the island of San Lorenzo, when an unworthy instance of Spanish cruelty presented
itself in the spectacle
of thirty-seven Chilian soldiers taken prisoners eight years before. The unhappy men had ever since been forced to work in
chains under the
supervision of a military guard--now prisoners in turn; their sleeping place during the whole of this period being a
filthy shed, in which they were every night chained by one leg to an iron
bar. The joy of the poor fellows at their deliverance, after all hope had
fled, can scarcely be
conceived.

From the liberated patriots and the Spanish
prisoners, I learned that in Lima there were a number of Chilian officers and
seamen taken on board
the Maypeu, whose condition was even more deplorable than their own, the fetters on their legs having worn their ancles
to the bone, whilst
their commander, by a refinement of cruelty, had for more than a year been lying under sentence of death as a rebel.
Upon this, I sent a flag of truce to the viceroy, Don Joaquim de la Pezuela,
requesting him to permit
the prisoners to return to their families, in exchange for the Spanish prisoners on board the squadron, and
others in Chili--where
there were great numbers, who were comparatively well treated. The Viceroy denied the charge of
ill-treatment--asserted his right, if he thought proper, to regard his prisoners as
pirates; retorting that after the battle of Maypeu, General San Martin had
treated the Spanish
Commissioner as a spy, and had repeatedly threatened him with death. The exchange of prisoners was uncourteously refused,
the Viceroy concluding
his reply with an expression of surprise that a British nobleman should command the maritime forces of a Government
"unacknowledged by all the Powers of the globe." To this latter observation,
I considered it
incumbent upon me to reply that "a British nobleman was a free man, and therefore had a right to adopt any country which
was endeavouring to
re-establish the rights of aggrieved humanity; and that I had hence adopted the cause of Chili, with the same freedom
of judgment that I had
previously exercised when refusing the offer of an Admiral's rank in Spain, made to me not long before, by the Spanish
Ambassador in London;"
this offer having been made by the Duke de San Carlos, in the name of Ferdinand the Seventh.

Our means being clearly
inadequate to any decisive attack on the Spanish ships of war, I resolved to try the effect of an
explosion vessel, and
accordingly established a laboratory on the island of San Lorenzo, under the superintendence of Major Miller, the
Commandant of Marines. Whilst engaged in this duty, that able and gallant
officer was so severely
burned by an accidental explosion, as to render his further services on this occasion unavailable.

On the 22nd of March--our
preparations being completed--we again stood towards the batteries, the flag-ship going close
in under the combined
fire of the forts and shipping, in order to divert the attention of the enemy from the explosion vessel, which was set
adrift in the direction
of the frigates, but, unfortunately, when within musket shot of them, she was struck by a round shot and foundered,
causing complete failure in our object. The San Martin and the Lautaro
keeping far astern,
there was no alternative but to withdraw from further attack, leaving the explosion vessel to her fate.

As other attempts, with our
want of means, would answer no better purpose than useless demonstration, and as the
ships were now destitute of water and provisions, we were obliged to fall
back upon Huacho, leaving the Chacabuco to watch the movements of the enemy.

The inhabitants of Huacho, who
were well disposed to co-operate in any effort for the emancipation of Peru, afforded us
every assistance in
provisioning and watering the ships, for which the commandant, Cevallos, shot two influential persons who had been foremost
in aiding us, and
severely punished others; at the same time seizing our water casks, and sending me an insolent letter of defiance, on
which a party of seamen
and marines was landed and put the garrison to flight; the officer commanding the party however withdrew from pursuit
at hearing salutes fired on the arrival of Admiral Blanco with the Galvarino and Puyrredon, mistaking this for an engagement with
a newly-arrived enemy.
The whole of the Government property found in the Spanish custom-house was captured.

The people of Huacho having
volunteered information that a quantity of specie belonging to the Philippine Company had
been placed for safety on board a vessel in the river Barranca, she was
forthwith overhauled, and the treasure transferred to the flag-ship.

Leaving Admiral Blanco at
Huacho with the San Martin and Puyrredon, on the 4th of April we sailed for Supe, with the
O'Higgins and Galvarino,
having previously ascertained that a sum of money destined for the payment of Spanish troops was on its way
from Lima to Guambucho;
on the following day a party of marines being landed at Patavilca, captured the treasure, amounting to 70,000
dollars, together with a quantity of military stores. On the 7th, having
received further
information that the Philippine Company had placed other treasure on board the French brig, Gazelle, at Guambucho, we
sailed for that place,
and, on the 10th, the seamen of the O'Higgins examined her, and brought off an additional sum of 60,000 dollars.

The secret of our obtaining
possession of these and other convoys of Spanish money along the coast, was, that I paid
the inhabitants highly
for information relative to their transmission, and was thus enabled to seize the treasure even in the interior of the
country. As the Chilian
Ministry subsequently refused to allow me "secret service money," these, disbursements were actually made at my own
expense.

It was also my object to make friends of the
Peruvian people, by
adopting towards them a conciliatory course, and by strict care that none but Spanish property should be taken, whilst
their own was in all
cases respected. Confidence was thus inspired, and the universal dissatisfaction with Spanish colonial rule
speedily became changed into an earnest desire to be freed from it. Had it not
been for this good
understanding with the inhabitants, I should scarcely have ventured to detach marines and seamen for operations at a
distance into the country, as was subsequently the case; the people giving me
the most reliable
information of every movement of the enemy.

On the 13th, we arrived at
Paita, where the Spaniards had established a garrison. A party of marines and seamen was again
landed, on which the
enemy fled from the fort, and a quantity of brass ordnance, spirits, and military stores, was captured.

Contrary to strict orders,
some marines stole a number of valuable church ornaments, but on the complaint of the
authorities I caused them to be restored, punishing the offenders, and at
the same time presenting the priests with a thousand dollars to repair the
damage done in their
churches; this act, though far from conciliating the priests--who dreaded Chilian success--adding greatly to our
popularity amongst the
inhabitants, which was my object in bestowing the amount. Our thus refraining from plunder was almost beyond the
comprehension of a people who had bitter experience of Spanish rapacity,
whilst the undisciplined Chilenos, who formed the greater portion of the
squadron, as little
comprehended why their plundering propensities should be restrained.

On the 5th of May, I proceeded
with the flag-ship alone to reconnoitre Callao, having learned that the Chacabuco
and Puyrredon
had been chased off the
port by the Spanish frigates. Finding that these were again moored under shelter of the batteries, we
returned to Supe,
convinced that our previous visit to Callao had proved sufficient to deter them from putting to sea for the protection
of their own coasts;
this, indeed, forming my chief reason for having persisted in attacks which, with our small force, could answer no other
purpose; but this alone
was an advantage gained, as it enabled us to communicate freely with the inhabitants on the coast, and to
ascertain their sentiments, which--from our forbearance, no less than command
of the sea--were almost
uniformly in favour of co-operation with Chili for their emancipation.

Both at Lima and on the coast,
the best effect was produced by the circulation of the following proclamation:--

"Compatriots! The repeated
echoes of liberty in South America have been heard with pleasure in every part of
enlightened Europe, more
especially in Great Britain, where I, unable to resist the desire of joining in such a cause, determined to
take part in it. The
Republic of Chili has confided to me the command of her naval forces. To these must the dominion of the Pacific
be consigned. By their
co-operation must your chains be broken. Doubt not but that the day is at hand on which, with the
annihilation of despotism and your now degraded condition, you will rise to
the rank of a free
nation, to which your geographical position and the course of events naturally call you."

"But it is your duty to
co-operate in preparing for this success, and to remove obstacles, under the assurance that
you will receive the
most efficacious assistance from the government of Chili, and your true friend, COCHRANE."

This proclamation was
accompanied by another from the Chilian government, declaratory of the sincerity of its
intentions, so that
these combined caused us to be everywhere received as liberators.

On the 8th, we returned to
Supe, and having learned that a Spanish force was in the vicinity, a detachment of marines and
seamen was, after dark,
pushed through a heavy surf, and landed, in the hope of taking them by surprise. But the enemy was on the alert, and on
the following morning
our little party fell into an ambuscade, which would have proved serious, had not Major Miller, who commanded the
marines, promptly formed
his men, who, attacking in turn, soon put the enemy to flight at the point of the bayonet, capturing their colours,
and the greater portion
of their arms. On the 13th, a detachment of Spanish troops arrived from Lima under Major Camba, who,
notwithstanding his
superiority of numbers, did not venture to attack our small party, which withdrew to the ships with a number of cattle
taken from the Spaniards; Camba writing to the Viceroy so effective a
description of his having "driven the enemy into the sea," that he was
immediately promoted.

Not to enter into further details of our visits to
other parts of the
coast, where similar captures of provisions and military stores, &c. were effected--it being my practice to compel the
Spaniards to supply all
the wants of the squadron, nothing being ever taken from the natives without payment,--I resolved--as our means were
clearly incommensurate
with our main object--to return to Valparaiso, for the purpose of organizing a more effective force, and on the 16th
of June reached that
port, where we found Admiral Blanco with the San Martin and Chacabuco, he having been obliged to raise the
blockade of Callao for
want of provisions; a step with which the Government was highly displeased, though with more reason to blame its
own negligence or want
of foresight in not providing them. Admiral Blanco was nevertheless put under arrest, but a court of inquiry being held,
he was honourably
acquitted.

The objects of the first expedition had been fully
accomplished, viz. to
reconnoitre, with a view to future operations, when the squadron should be rendered efficient; but more especially to
ascertain the
inclinations of the Peruvians with regard to their desire for emancipation--a point of the first importance to
Chili, as being obliged
to be constantly on the alert for her own newly-acquired liberties, so long as the Spaniards were in undisturbed
possession of Peru. To the accomplishment of these objects had been
superadded the restriction of the Spanish naval force to the shelter of the
forts, the defeat of their military forces wherever encountered, and the
capture of no
inconsiderable amount of treasure.

It had, however, become
evident to me that the passive system of defence which the Spaniards adopted in Callao, would
render it a difficult
matter to get at them without more effective means than the guns of the ships, which were greatly inferior in number to
those of the enemy's
fortress and shipping combined, whilst their experience in the use of artillery was greater than that of our crews. The
Supreme Director having
paid a visit to the squadron--on the 21st of June I addressed to him a letter, stating my apprehension that the
finances of the
Government might be limited, and that I would gladly give up to the exigencies of the Republic the whole of my share
of prize-money taken
during our recent cruize, provided it were applied to the manufacture of rockets. This offer was declined, with a
compliment from the Supreme Director, on the advantage already gained, by
compelling the Spaniards ignominiously to shut "themselves up in their
port, in spite of their
numerical superiority."

Complimentary addresses from the Chilian people
were also presented to
me in profusion, and a public panegyric was pronounced at the National Institute of the capital, upon the service
rendered; but as this was only a recapitulation of what has been already
narrated--conveyed in
flowery rhetorical phrases--in the use of which the Occidentals are almost as expert, and often as exaggerated, as are
the Orientals--I shall
refrain from giving it. Suffice it to say, that the people were not a little delighted with the plain facts, that
whereas only a few
months before theirs had been the blockaded port, they were now able to beard the enemy in his stronghold, till then
believed--both by
Spaniards and Chilians--to be inviolable; and that, with only four ships on our part, the Spanish Viceroy had been shut up
in his capital, and his
convoys, both by sea and land, intercepted, whilst his ships of war did not venture to emerge from their shelter under
the batteries of Callao.

The manufacture of rockets was
now carried on in earnest, under the superintendence of Mr. Goldsack, an eminent
engineer, who had been
engaged in England for the purpose. From a mistaken notion of parsimony, the labour of constructing and filling them was
allotted to a number of
Spanish prisoners, with what result will appear in the sequel.

In these and other
preparations two months were consumed, in the course of which another vessel--an American built
corvette--was added to the squadron, and named by the Supreme Director
the Independencia.

During my absence Lady
Cochrane chiefly resided at Valparaiso, where she diligently employed herself in promoting
objects essential to the welfare of the squadron; after a time removing to
a delightful country
house at Quillota, where her life was endangered by a ruffian in the interest of the Spanish faction.

This man, having gained
admission to her private apartment, threatened her with instant death if she would not divulge
the secret orders which
had been given to me. On her declaring firmly that she would not divulge anything, a struggle took place for a paper which
she picked off a table;
and before her attendants could come to her assistance she received a severe cut from a stiletto. The
assassin was seized,
condemned, and ordered for execution, without the last offices of the Catholic religion.

In the dead of the night
preceding the day fixed for his execution, Lady Cochrane was awoke by loud lamentations beneath
her window. On sending
to ascertain the cause, the wretched wife of the criminal was found imploring her Ladyship's intercession that her
husband should not be
deprived of the benefits of confession and absolution. Forgiving the atrocity of the act, Lady Cochrane, on the
following morning used all her influence with the authorities, not for this
alone, but to save the
man's life, and at length wrung from them a reluctant consent to commute his punishment to banishment for life.

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